‘Hear the Cry of the Earth and the Cry of the Poor’

OUR COMMON HOME The Justice and Peace Committee of Our Lady of the Holy Angels Parish, Little Falls, held a presentation June 15 to mark the first anniversary of the publication of Pope Francis’ encyclical on protecting the environment and caring for our fellow humans, “Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home.” Pictured after the talk at Holy Angels are Agnes Czaplinski, head of the committee, and Jim Andreano, a committee member and presenter of the talk.

By
MICHAEL WOJCIK, News Editor

LITTLE FALLS ﻿﻿This month, the Church and the global community celebrate the first anniversary of the publication of “Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home,” Pope Francis’ groundbreaking encyclical that urges everyone to take part in the urgent mission of protecting the Earth and caring for our fellow humans. In that time, the document also has inspired some parishes in the Paterson Diocese to get involved in educating people about the Pope’s message, the environment and social justice or take direct action on conservation initiatives.

Among those parishes that have acted on “Laudato Si” since its release June 18 last year are Our Lady of the Holy Angels, Little Falls; St. Matthew the Apostle, Randolph; and St. Mary’s, Pompton Lakes. Holy Angels recently held a presentation on “Laudato Si” while St. Mary’s has been engaged in both environmental education and action.

Meanwhile, St. Matthew’s installed a water filter on a faucet in a small sink in the kitchen of its parish office to help reduce the use of bottled water, while also educating faithful about the environment. It has the capability of filtering about 5,000 gallons per filter and has been outfitted with a hose attachment for ease of filling pitchers and coolers for meetings and parties — part of the parishes ongoing conservation efforts, which include installing LED light bulbs.

“The Pope eloquently addresses our responsibility of caring our common home and for our making changes if we wish to leave resources for our children, grandchildren and generations to come. A great place to start is with water,” said Elizabeth Robinson, a St. Matthew’s parishioner, who gave presentations on “Laudato Si” to the parish community, after getting permission from Father Daniel Murphy, pastor, and suggesting the new water filter in consultation with the parish office staff. “[This is] an issue that goes well beyond the recycling of plastic water bottles; water commoditization is over-pumping our groundwater’s worldwide, leaving tables lower and lower. We can stand with Pope Francis and help expand the spirit of the letter. Let’s all try to reduce, if not totally stop, buying cases of water for use in our homes. We can no longer do what ‘we’ve always done’ to make a difference. The journey begins with one step,” she wrote in the parish bulletin.

Since the release of “Laudato Si,” St. Mary’s Advocates for Justice — part of the parish’s Social Justice Ministry — has been giving presentations on the document in the parish, in other parishes and to organizations around the community. The Pope’s message has energized the already active Social Justice Ministry, which established a website, earthactions.org, for education and advocacy about issues, such as climate change; genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in food production; and fracking, or hydraulic fracturing. The group lobbied lawmakers to oppose a proposed oil pipeline through New Jersey, said Jackie Schramm, Social Justice Ministry director, who noted, “Pope Francis’ [in the letter] guidance moved us in this direction.” The Justice and Peace Committee of Holy Angels marked the first anniversary of “Laudato Si” by holding a talk on June 15 to examine the encyclical and discuss possible individual and community action. Presenting the talk was Jim Andreano, a committee member and a certified presenter for the Climate Reality Project, who has spoken previously at the parish about climate change.

“The Pope is writing to the entire world. Our conversation must include all, because environmental challenges affect us all. We must bring the world together for sustainable and integral development,” said Andreano, quoting and paraphrasing the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops’ synopsis of the encyclical, which quotes it at length. “The fruits [of the earth] are for everyone. We are responsible for our neighbor and have care of the earth. We are not God. We must develop, direct and limit our power,” he said.

The Pope urges us to “hear the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.” The poor, who usually have no power or influence to speak up for themselves, live in places affected by global warming that make their poverty worse and ruin the land that provides their livelihood. In turn, the developing nations that create most of the problems feel the least impact. To reduce our impact on the environment, we need to make changes in our production and consumption of goods and simplify our lifestyle, said Andreano in quoting Pope Francis.

Although some prefer the U.S. to stand alone in the world, the nations of the globe need to act in solidarity in confronting these environmental and social problems, in part, by ratifying enforceable international agreements that carry meaningful punishments for violators. “The Pope speaks about the spiritual roots of environmentalism. The Eucharist motivates us to be stewards of all creation, while Christianity gives us a reason to hope that our efforts will change the world,” Andreano said.

“So it is time to act. All Christian’s communities and individuals have a role to play and can make a difference,” said Andreano, who noted that individuals and parishes can take steps to reduce emissions but also must lobby civil and political leaders to enact environmental legislation.